The Possible Horrors of Halloween

Due to its history, Halloween has had a close relationship with the metaphysical. It has its roots in an ancient Celtic festival, Samhain, meaning Summer’s End. The festival was all about the death of summer and the beginning of the Celtic New Year. The world of living and the world of the dead were believed to have merged on this night. The spirits of the dead supposedly returned to the earth and this made it easier for Celtic priests to predict the future. Many of our current Halloween customs such as bonfires, costumes, trick-or-treating, and ghost stories can be traced back to activities of the festival. However, witches and black cats began to be associated with Halloween at a later time. After Christianity took hold, the festival of Samhain turned into All Hallows Eve, All Saints Day, and All Souls Day. People began viewing the Celtic Druids as witches; sometimes witches that could change into cats. People began to be murdered for this and cats were slaughtered.

The sad thing is that some of this superstition is still around today. Animal shelters have a markedly more difficult time adopting out black cats, and even black dogs, throughout the year. There have been some cases of the torture of cats, especially black ones, around Halloween. In addition, some people adopt black cats from animal shelters for the novelty of it, only to end up not caring for them. It is for this reason that many shelters will not adopt out black cats in the weeks leading up to Halloween.

I implore you to please know that these animals are not harmful and deserve to be cared for in the same way that all others are. If you own pets and live in an area where there will be high levels of Halloween activity, please keep your pet inside. We hope and trust that these cases are few and far between, but it is always wise to be safe.

We wish you all a very safe and healthy Halloween. I ask that you consider the animals as well as the children. When you are buying that $5.00 bag of candy, might you consider giving the animals a treat as well and donating that same amount to Hope Through Havoc, a non-profit animal rescue org? You can do so by going to our site and donating through PayPal under Critter Construction. Let’s share our love and light with all! Blessings to you all.